I remember on a date with an ex-boyfriend, I ordered a salad (a large meal salad) and my ex-bf announced "that's not food, she'd like (blank)" and I was so stunned that I didn't correct the waitress, so I was stuck with what he'd ordered me, which was meat heavy and while I'm not a vegetarian, I don't eat a lot of red meat (and I eat more now than I did at the time of the incident). Sadly, the incident is not what lead me to break-up with him.

I nominate my mother as a food dictator! Last weekend I got a 45 minute lecture on the food I should be eating, the habits I should be making, how much weight I should be losing per week even! It's very strange, because my mom is almost as heavy as I am, and has much less success than me in losing weight. Yet somehow she knows everything that I need to do to lose my weight. It's very irritating. She also doesn't believe that some people have true physical issues if they don't eat regularly, so some of her advice to me includes things like "only eat within an 8 hour period of time" and "just don't eat breakfast or dinner, so your body is forced to use your reserves". I don't know why she doesn't remember that if I put off eating I get really emotional and angry with people, or can end up with such bad stomach pains that I cry. The absolute strangest part is that this only takes place on the phone. She won't say a word to me if we eat together, or are talking in person. Only over the phone.

I'm not sure if this is a food-dictator thing or a brain hurt thing, but my mother is always pushing food on me. She's convinced that I eat nothing but junk food at home so when I'm visiting she spends the whole time pushing healthy stuff on me. "You want some oatmeal? No? How about some steamed broccoli? Avocados are a super food!" I'll usually eat a bit if I'm hungry, but she keeps pushing even when I'm full.

The brain hurt part? When I tell her I'm full she counters with "You don't have to be hungry to eat this. This isn't food, it's medicine!" Gah! Since the day I walked out mid-flow she's started backing down much faster. Hooray for my developing spine!

I'm not sure if this is a food-dictator thing or a brain hurt thing, but my mother is always pushing food on me. She's convinced that I eat nothing but junk food at home so when I'm visiting she spends the whole time pushing healthy stuff on me. "You want some oatmeal? No? How about some steamed broccoli? Avocados are a super food!" I'll usually eat a bit if I'm hungry, but she keeps pushing even when I'm full.

The brain hurt part? When I tell her I'm full she counters with "You don't have to be hungry to eat this. This isn't food, it's medicine!" Gah! Since the day I walked out mid-flow she's started backing down much faster. Hooray for my developing spine!

Lol, yeah you usually don't have to eat several ounces of medicine!

Tell her to get back to you when they have broccoli and avocados in pill form.

Logged

"... for there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so."-William Shakespeare

"We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't." ~Frank A. Clark

1) I had a coworker who was obsessed with fat grams in food. She consumed no fat. She also believed that everyone else should consume no fat. She rapidly lost quite a lot of weight. She believed the rest of us could/should lose weight like she did if we watched our fat grams the way she did. She would patrol the break room during all of the rotating lunch periods to see what we were eating, and, of course, to make comments about the amount of fat in our food.

She let us all know that she had a physical coming up, and she was so excited to hear what her doctor thought about her weight and her diet. Guess what: Her doctor was not pleased with her diet or her weight. She had managed, in eating no fat, to mess up her blood chemistry. Her blood levels were all out of whack. To her credit, she did share that with us. She was informed by her doctor that a healthy diet includes some fat. We didn't get anymore comments from her about what we were eating.

2) I do not like eggs. Ever since I was very young, I have not eaten them. I don't like the taste or the texture. My family always gave me a hard time about this because they are all egg eaters. If they were eating eggs, I would eat a bowl of cereal. I heard about how weird I was for not liking eggs. I was pressured incessantly about eating eggs. I have tried eggs on numerous occasions, and the result is the same: I don't like them. The pressure about eggs was applied even after I was on my own. I'd still hear about it when I visited. "Don't you want some eggs?" "Everyone else likes eggs." "You should at least try the eggs." "If you don't eat the eggs, you'll hurt my feelings."

When I was well into my 20s, my mother told me that she'd known I didn't like eggs from the time I was a baby. Apparently, the pediatrician told her to feed me jarred egg yolks. I think it was for extra protein. She did that, and I just spit them out. I would not eat the eggs. When she told me this, I said, "So you've known for my entire life that I don't like eggs, and yet you continue to pressure me anyway about eating them." "Well, yes," she said. "If you would eat them, eventually, you would grow to like them."

It never succeeded but my mother refused to understand that I couldn't stand mayonnaise. If I made a BLT in front of her she would get on my case if I didn't put mayonnaise on it.

Her: But it's so dry.Me: I don't like mayonnaise.Her: But you don't even taste it.Me: Then why use it?

That made me smile - what a great comeback!

I love mayo, but when I'm trying to lose a few pounds, it's the first thing I give up. Then I went to Subway and ordered my usual ham and cheese and specified no condiments at all, just meat and cheese please. Fellow taking my order said, but that's so dry! How about some nice oil and vinegar? No thanks. Mustard? Ranch dressing? No thanks. Then try one our flavored mayos, chipotle? garlic? herb? No thank you!

I guess "no condiments" was totally foreign to him. Poor fellow was still giving me suggestions as I finished paying and walked out of the store with my "dry" sandwich!

My friend Blanche loves dairy foods and knows very well that I don't. We have had numerous conversations about food have gone like this:

Her: So last night I was at such-and-such restaurant and had the best macaroni and cheese ever.Me: I don't care for macaroni and cheese.Her: Oh, I think cheese is just the most wonderful food ever!Me: More for you, then.

After a few of these the conversation went more like this:

Her: I had the best cream of mushroom soup last night.Me: Well, mushrooms aren't my thing --Her (sarcastically): Yes, and I know you HATE dairy. You despise it -- Me: About that movie we talked about five minutes ago...

After a few of those I changed the last line to:

With a million different acceptable foodstuffs in the world I'm entitled to not like something you do.

So you've known for my entire life that I don't like eggs, and yet you continue to pressure me anyway about eating them." "Well, yes," she said. "If you would eat them, eventually, you would grow to like them."

I get this about coffee. I do not like coffee, anything coffee-flavored or has any coffee-like substance in it. I get, "put sugar and cream in it!" "It's low-calorie!" "If you start drinking it, you will grow to love it!"

My friend Blanche loves dairy foods and knows very well that I don't. We have had numerous conversations about food have gone like this:

Her: So last night I was at such-and-such restaurant and had the best macaroni and cheese ever.Me: I don't care for macaroni and cheese.Her: Oh, I think cheese is just the most wonderful food ever!Me: More for you, then.

After a few of these the conversation went more like this:

Her: I had the best cream of mushroom soup last night.Me: Well, mushrooms aren't my thing --Her (sarcastically): Yes, and I know you HATE dairy. You despise it -- Me: About that movie we talked about five minutes ago..

After a few of those I changed the last line to:

With a million different acceptable foodstuffs in the world I'm entitled to not like something you do.

This conversation has not been repeated since.

Wait, why is it not ok for Blanche to talk about something she enjoyed just because she knows you don't it?

There are loads of foods, movies and books that my friends love and I don't care for, but I still like to hear about how much they enjoyed them.

My friend Blanche loves dairy foods and knows very well that I don't. We have had numerous conversations about food have gone like this:

Her: So last night I was at such-and-such restaurant and had the best macaroni and cheese ever.Me: I don't care for macaroni and cheese.Her: Oh, I think cheese is just the most wonderful food ever!Me: More for you, then.

After a few of these the conversation went more like this:

Her: I had the best cream of mushroom soup last night.Me: Well, mushrooms aren't my thing --Her (sarcastically): Yes, and I know you HATE dairy. You despise it -- Me: About that movie we talked about five minutes ago..

After a few of those I changed the last line to:

With a million different acceptable foodstuffs in the world I'm entitled to not like something you do.

This conversation has not been repeated since.

Wait, why is it not ok for Blanche to talk about something she enjoyed just because she knows you don't it?

There are loads of foods, movies and books that my friends love and I don't care for, but I still like to hear about how much they enjoyed them.

Yeah, this. Venus, it doesn't sound like she was trying to push those items on you--just sharing her joy in something, the same way you'd talk about how much fun you had seeing a movie. Without knowing a lot of background or weird tone or anything, it sounds like you were shooting down her trying to talk about her enjoyment of something.